More Than 150 Killed In Earthquake On Iraq-Iran Borders; U.S. President Meets With Duterte At ASEAN Summit; Saad Hariri Says He Will Soon Return To Lebanon; More Than 200 Killed In Earthquake On Iraq- Iran Border; Trump Traded Insults With Kim Jong-Un; Reporters: U.S. Soldier Found With Hands Tied After Ambush; Hundred March In Hollywood For Sexual Misconduct Victims; Boy Dying Of Cancer Gets Thousands Of Christmas Cards, Texas Church Memorial. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired November 13, 2017 - 01:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[01:00:00] CYRIL VANIER, CNN ANCHOR: At least 1500 people injured and over 150 killed in Iran after an Earthquake hits the border with Iraq. In Manila, we're expecting some remarks from U.S. President Donald Trump at the ASEAN Summit later this hour. The president just finished meeting with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, his host. And thousands of people respond to a Christmas wish from a nine-year- old boy dying of cancer, we'll have more on that later. Thank you for joining us, everyone. I'm Cyril Vanier live from the CNN NEWSROOM here in Atlanta.

The rescuers in Iraq and Iran are searching for people under the rubble after a deadly earthquake rocked the border between the two countries. The 7.3 magnitude quake hit about 30 kilometers from the Iraqi city of Halabja. Iranian officials say that at least 164 people have been killed on their side of the border with more than 1500 injured. And in Iraq itself at least four people have died, dozens more were injured, and that death toll has already risen from the last hour and still expected to rise, unfortunately.

People felt the quake throughout Iraq like at this Baghdad grocery store. New agencies in Pakistan, in Lebanon, Kuwait, and Turkey, also reported feeling tremors. Let's turn to Ivan Cabrera who joins us from the CNN Weather Center. You've been monitoring developments, what's going on?

IVAN CABRERA, CNN METEOROLOGIST: More aftershocks and they continue, and some of them are particularly strong too which in and of it selves are earthquake center, pretty strong (INAUDIBLE). Let's talk about this and show you what's going to happen here. As far as the totals here, the numbers, 7.3, only one in 15 earthquakes during the entire year across the entire planet happen. Now, this one did occur had a 7.3.

And 23 kilometers, that is the depth, it's about as shallow as I've seen, about a shallow as you can get, which means that it was a full force -- there was nothing to stop it as far the shockwaves that come from epicenter reaching the surface and impacting with the buildings. Not much a buff at there at all. There is the location there, a border thereof Iraq. And as far as the aftershocks, you just got a couple since we last saw

each, right? Last hour, the death toll has risen over 30 folks and we've got more aftershocks here. And again, these are pretty strong quakes. The strongest one, 5.3 magnitudes -- that earthquake by itself can cost significant damage even if we got a 7.3. So, this is what we're talking about, and this will continue over the next several hours and next several days.

The frequency and the intensity both will diminish, however, wherein that first 24 to 48-hour period, where you will get -- and tend to get some significant quakes here. Anywhere from 5.3 to 6.3, you get upwards of 10. I don't expect anything much above that, that would be something.

Sometimes we do get a stronger quake, and, of course, then we're talking about the other one being a foreshock, but let's not even carve that possibility. There's the epicenter, there's the focus, again we'll line it down here because that way it doesn't reach the surface as far as with that intensity. But, this one, certainly did and we'll continue to see that.

And one other focus is, you know, the surface, the aftershocks tend to be there as well. As far as the forecast over the next few days, we'll continue, in fact, to see that as far as (INAUDIBLE). These are some of the stats here, we'll take about a little bit more about that in the next hour.

But the forecast we'll talk about, just a few clouds, just -- perhaps, temperatures in the mid and upper 20s here and not expecting significant. We'll you want first responders rescue to get to those structures and not have weather impeding that, and I don't think that will be an issue. And, of course, the death toll rises as folk is recovered from underneath that rubble which is going to be quite a thing to do right in the next few days. The horrific situation there for our friends in Iran.

VANIER: Yes. The major challenge on both sides of the Iran-Iraq border. Ivan Cabrera, I know you're going to be following this for us. We'll speak to you throughout the morning. Thank you very much.

Now U.S. President Donald Trump has just met with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, his host at a summit of Southeast Asian leaders in Manila. The president praised his host before their meeting, but when asked by a journalist whether he would bring up the subject of human rights, Mr. Trump didn't respond to the question.

Let's bring in CNN's Matt Rivers in the Philippine capital, Manila. And in Hong Kong, also we'll be speaking Glenn Shive of the Hong Kong- American Center. Matt, to you first, Mr. Trump and Mr. Duterte have met. Their first proper sit-down meeting, what can you tell us about their relationship?

MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, their relationship according to the White House is one of a warm rapport, that's how a senior White House official described their relationship to reporters before President Trump went on this trip. And from the Philippines side, President Duterte has been a big fan of President Trump -- he's had nothing, really, but praise for the U.S. leader in a way that, frankly, he had the exact kind of opposite feelings towards Barack Obama.

[01:05:16] The outcome of this meeting, though, will have a lot to do with their relationship moving forward, because we're all wondering how forcefully, if at all, Donald Trump brings up the issue of human rights violations committed by the Duterte administration, according to human rights groups from around the world during this ongoing crackdown against drugs here in the country. The White House says that Donald Trump was planning on bringing up that issue with the Philippine president, but we're not sure how forcefully he did it, whether he condemned the actions here or whether he would say anything about it publicly moving forward.

We haven't had details about exactly what was discussed in that bilateral meeting. He did try, reporters did try with the traveling (INAUDIBLE) who asked about human rights. And the president didn't answer, the President Duterte actually said: this wasn't a press statement. And he said, with you guys around -- meaning the press -- you are the spies. So, he wouldn't answer the question before the meeting, what happened during the meaning, we're not sure yet. But it certainly the number one issue that we're all going to be asking for the rest of the day.

VANIER: All right. What is Mr. Trump, the U.S. President, actually trying to get up his day in the Philippines? We know he didn't come here to talk about human rights, he said before: he doesn't like to lecture his host. So, what is the -- what's he looking for the in The Philippines?

RIVERS: Yes, this is all about trade, frankly. And what Donald Trump has called unfair trade deals with countries not only here at the ASEAN Summit but also other countries like China, and Japan and South Korea, that's really been the overall theme of that. And, of course, North Korea, those would be the two big topics on every single stop the president has made, and that doesn't change here in Manila. But, you know, more specifically talking about this region, what the president will likely try to do is make sure that the American economic influence that has been present in this part of the world for a very long time now remains robust even though the president under his leadership has pulled out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership as one of his first moves as president.

That has many people questioning whether countries like China can step up and fill a void of economic influence. And so, the president certainly trying to make sure that the American trade imprint is fixed, as he would put it because it's unfair trade deals as he often says. But also, that the American economic influence remains strong in Southeast Asia.

VANIER: Matt Rivers reporting live from Manila, the capital of the Philippines. Let me turn to Glenn Shive. Glenn, what leverage does the U.S. President have when he's talking to the East Asian countries and when it comes to trade and he tells them he wants fairer trade deals? What's his leverage there? GLENN SHIVE, DIRECTOR AND CEO, HONG KONG AMERICA CENTER: Well, the

American economy is huge and the access to the American markets is so important to the growth of all these Asian countries. And when there's a recession, it's the American economy that historically has pulled other countries out of recession. And so, it's very important -- our economic clout is what they want, and so he has a chance to say, well, you can have access to our markets if we have reciprocal access to yours. So, that's, I think, the main clout.

VANIER: The regional countries are going ahead with a regional trade deal, the TPP.

SHIVE: Yes.

VANIER: That's the one that Obama administration worked on that Trump pulled the U.S. out of when he came in power.

SHIVE: Right.

VANIER: But the regional countries are going ahead without the United States. So, how can the United States insert itself as far as trade is concerned in this region?

SHIVE: Well, it's playing another game, and it's yet to be seen if this is going to work. But a lot of the other countries that came together around TPP was through U.S. leadership, and in a sense that access to the American market is something that everybody wanted as part of the TPP. Now, without U.S. in the mix, can it still work? I think, probably, yes. But the danger is that America is on the outside looking in. And a lot of these agreements is not just about tariffs, it's about barriers behind the border that, I mean, gaining access to these markets.

And that's a big structural problem in China, in other parts of Asia, and it's unclear that Trump has made a lot of headways on this trip. He's talking bilateral trade agreements but if you're big America and the smaller country, one-on-one, you know, it's to your disadvantage probably to negotiate a bilateral trade agreement. Even the Korean- U.S. Agreement -- U.S. says it wants to negotiate.

So, I mean, we're in an uncertain time with NAFTA, for example. And so, it's very important that the Trump administration come clear with what it wants, what style of the agreement, what style of the agreement, what's included? Are we talking about just tariffs? Are we talking about environmental and labor issues? Are we talking about investment treaties? Are we talking about services? That's the new growth area that trade agreements need to -- need to define.

And we have an enormous power of our service economy, and it can play out very important. But actually, to be outside the TPP is actually not a good position to be in, and I think he was talking at odds with his audience in denying and now, again, at the ASEAN meeting in Manila.

[01:10:47] VANIER: Tell me about the wider strategy in the region for Mr. Trump. We heard a lot about the Indo-Pacific strategy going into this trip, what is that and is it working, or can it work?

SHIVE: It's a good question. And, you know, he criticized Obama for talking about pivot and sort of a lot of language without much substance. And TPP was going to be the economic substance of that. Indo-Pacific involves India, but India is really not even there.

I think Asia is the core term for these 21 countries that are meeting in Vietnam and again in Manila, that they're not sure what does it mean that U.S. is bringing India in and is this a counterpoint to China? You know, so, there's -- again, he talks ahead of laying out the details or the concrete actions that he's preparing to take. And I think a lot of these leaders -- while they appreciate the one-on-one rapport with him, meeting him finally, but they're very concerned that his changeability and, in fact, that his language is out ahead of his actions.

And they just say we got to wait and see what they actually do. He has half the people he needs on board to do the follow-up work; he hasn't hired them on yet. So, he's in a sense out ahead of himself a bit. And so, people are scratching their heads and saying, you know, what's this going to mean. But Indo-Pacific, it might go down as a term once used, and then turned away.

It's -- are we talking about language that indicates that America is going to step back from ASEAN, and it's Japan, Australia, India -- you know, that's a broad circle. Is this a strategic relationship? Are we talking an economic relationship? It's unclear. And I think for the ASEAN people they're saying we're not with that. The integration with India with the rest of Asia -- India, in the sense what -- like that, but I don't -- we don't see where that's playing out.

VANIER: Glenn Shive of the Hong Kong America Center, good to have you back on the show. Thank you very much.

SHIVE: Pleasure.

VANIER: During President Trump's stop in Vietnam reporters asked him whether he discussed election meddling with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The two chatted briefly on the sidelines of the APEC Summit -- that was on Friday. Mr. Trump said that he thought Russian President Vladimir Putin was sincere in his denial of Russian meddling in the U.S. election. President Trump, however, did not specifically say that Russia was behind the hacks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I believe that he feels that he and Russia did not meddle in the election. As to whether I believe it or not, I'm with our agencies, especially as currently constituted with their leadership. I believe in our intel agencies, our intelligence agencies, I've worked with them very strongly. They weren't 17 as was previously reported, there was actually four. But they were saying there was 17, there were actually four. But as currently led by fine people, I believe very much in our intelligence agencies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VANIER: Well, two former intelligence chiefs talked with CNN's Jake Tapper about the fact that a U.S. president has to clarify that he trusts his own intelligence services over a foreign leader.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: He said, Putin believes what he believes, and, you know, I side with our intelligence agencies, but it was vague. Why do think he does that?

JAMES CLAPPER, FORMER DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY: I don't know why the ambiguity about this because the threat posed by Russia as John just said is a manifest, and obvious, and has been for a long time. Putin is committed to undermining our system, our democracy, and our whole process. And to try to paint it in any other way is, I think, astounding, and, in fact, poses a peril to this country.

TAPPER: What threat? What peril does it pose to the country?

[01:15:02] CLAPPER: Well, for one, as we've in the evidence that's come out since the publication of our intelligence community assessment on January, it further reinforces the depth and magnitude in scope and the aggressiveness of the Russian interference to include their very astute use of social media. Apart from that, something we don't think about much is the fact the Russians are embarked on a very aggressive modernization of their strategic nuclear forces to include a very capable and scary counter space program.

They only have one adversary in mind when they do this. And oh, by the way, the Russians are an abject violation of the INF Treaty, the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty. So, the Russians do not harbor good intentions towards the United States, and there shouldn't be any illusions or any ambiguity about that. And our president, the president, fosters that ambiguity.

TAPPER: What message do you think President Trump is sending to Vladimir Putin right now in terms of Russia's continued attempts to interfere in elections in Europe, and potentially in the United States again?

CLAPPER: Well, I think what he doing is, he's saying to Vladimir Putin we need to put this behind us because they're important -- there's important work to be done. I agree we need to be able to find a way to improve relations between Moscow and Washington. But I think that by not confronting the issue directly and not acknowledging to Putin that we know that you're responsible for this, I think he's giving Putin a pass, and I think it demonstrates to Mr. Putin that Donald Trump can be played by foreign leaders who are going to appeal to his ego and to try to play upon his insecurities -- which is very, very worrisome from a national security standpoint.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VANIER: When we come back, (INAUDIBLE) finally speaks out from Saudi Arabia. We'll have an analysis of his announced resignation as prime minister. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KATE RILEY, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Kate Riley with your CNN WORLD SPORT headlines. Switzerland is headed to the World Cup in Russian next summer after their goaler second-leg draw the Northern Ireland. The green and white army could've taken it to extra time when Jonny Evans' header was cleared off the line in the dying minute. With no goals on Sunday, the draw sees Switzerland off to the World Cup. 1-0 winners on aggregate.

Lewis Hamilton may not have much to race for in the final two Formula One races of the year. But that hasn't stopped the British driver for making things interesting for himself. Starting from the last place, Hamilton quickly rose through the pack and actually led for a while. Once all the leaders took a pitstop, in the end, he could not manage better than fourth. (INAUDIBLE) holding strong over the last couple of laps to keep the four-time champion of the podium. The race went to Sebastian Vettel -- he wins in Brazil for the first time since 2013 and his third time overall. His 47th career grand prix victory.

[01:20:20] And the United States have won their first Fed Cup title since 2000. Final against Belarus would go to a deciding doubles match. And after saving a key set point to take the doubles match in straight. Coco Vandeweghe and Shelby Rogers coming through to America in straight sets there. And that's a look at all your sports headlines. I'm Kate Riley.

VANIER: Saad Hariri is finally speaking out after announcing his resignation as Lebanon's prime minister. In a new interview, he says that he will return to his country and formerly step down. However, he also signaled that he could stay in his post. Hariri announced that he wasn't abdicating more than a week ago in Saudi Arabia. He said, he feared assassination and he denounced Iran and Hezbollah -- that has led to speculations that the Saudis are controlling him. Riyadh has lofted a proxy war with Iran, and some believed it wants to expand its reach in Lebanon. Here's what Hariri said about Iran's Lebanese ally, Hezbollah in the new interview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAAD HARIRI, FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF LEBANON (through translator): We had to adhere to the fact that the interest of Lebanon is first and foremost. I am not against one party against another party. I'm not against Hezbollah the sense that it is a political party, which is what it should be. But that doesn't mean that Hezbollah should ruin Lebanon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VANIER: Let's talk to CNN Global Affairs Analyst, Aaron David Miller, who joins me now via Skype from Washington D.C. I've got a very, very simple question for you, Aaron, what is going on? Everything we're seeing here with Mr. Hariri over the last week simply doesn't add up. I mean, he resigned, it fuels speculation -- he was being held against his will because he'd resigned he made that statement in another country which is very unusual in and of itself. Now, he says, he could go back to Lebanon to do it by the book, but he could also revoke his own resignation, what's going on?

AARON DAVID MILLER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST (via Skype): Look, I think, this is part of a broader story -- and the broader story is: people ask, oh, yes, what's new in the Middle East, and usually heavy work for half of secretary of state over 25-year period, I usually say. And it's true, but there are two words that are new now: Saudi Arabia. The reality is, we've never seen anything quite like this before -- risk-ready, young, 30-something who at some point will become king of Saudi Arabia for half a century, possibly.

VANIER: You're talking about the crown prince now.

MILLER: Yes, basically, bin Salman -- MBS, for short, who has pretensions and presumptions to fundamentally transform the Saudi System and to project Saudi power and influence in the region in a way we have never seen before. In 25 years at the state, we long for Saudi Arabia that was more risk-ready, willing to take more responsibility at home in war-making and peace-making.

The reality is, we now have one -- I suspect the MBS is more than we bargained for, and Lebanon is the latest piece, it seems to be, of this Saudi change in policy. I think MBS is determined to check Hezbollah and Iran in the region; it gathered they have the horse to pull the wagon in that direction. They've started in Yemen over a two-year period. They pushed cateresses into an unsuccessful failed policy that's boycotted in the last four months.

VANIER: But how does Mr. Hariri fit into this?

MILLER: Well, I think he does, in the sense that the Saudi's see Lebanon as the window to which Iran affects Arab decision-making, and Hezbollah is the inevitably the agent, holding on a subsidiary of Tehran. And now, you have a pro-Saudi Lebanese Sunni prime minister, which has come -- who has come under tremendous pressure. In fact, you can be a hostage in more than one respect.

You don't have to be physically incarcerated at the writs or in (INAUDIBLE) homes in Riyadh. The question is: does Hariri have any free will to guide his own political future? And what we've seen in the last several days with all of the tic tac, and the staging, and the pressure, the answer to that question is: is no.

And I suspect in the next -- within the next week or so, we're going to see a formal resignation and the beginnings of a -- of a series of steps in Lebanon whose end game is simply not clear. And this is the real issue, it seems to me: what is the Saudi strategy? As an American, this administration clearly has a stake, it would seem to me, in controlling its own foreign policy.

We have endorsed MBS and King Salman -- President Trump tweeted several days ago that he has confidence in the Saudis, they know what they're doing, and this is a highly arguable proposition.

[01:25:25] VANIER: Look, Lebanon is a really difficult country to meddle in. I mean, the politic there are unstable, they're confessional. What is the end of the road look like for Lebanon?

MILLER: I mean, this, this is -- this, I think, is perhaps the frontest dimension of this. Lebanon has enjoyed the (INAUDIBLE) natural period of stability and even prosperity over the course of several years. No one would've imagined, at least to all I meet, that the Arab spring, with all this instability in Syria and Iraq, some at Lebanon would escape in large measure -- they haven't escaped it entirely but it escaped in the large part of the ripples generated from the Arab spring, towards them was of 20 percent.

This year from last, the Bay Root Marathon it gathered -- was run, 47,000 fugitive runners. And I think what the Saudis are doing with the prospects of turning Lebanon once again into the kind of arena that it's been over the course of the last several decades. A sort of arena for a proxy war. You've got the Iranians involved, you've got Hezbollah, the key player. You got the Sunni community, the Christians, and, of course, you got the Israelis. So, all of this seems to me, is swirling Iran in a pot -- stirred largely by the Saudis.

Without a recipe, it seems to me, for some sort of in product that's going to tastes good to just about anybody, particularly Lebanese. And I worry greatly that the Saudis are prepared to confront Hezbollah and Iran to the last Lebanese, perhaps even to the last Israelis, because I think they do envision that at some point there will be an Israeli-Hezbollah confrontation. And that somehow, the Israelis' paradoxically (INAUDIBLE) maybe will somehow deliver -- and the Saudi strategy and make it successful, that's a highly, highly fraught bet.

VANIER: All right.

MILLER: Very uncertain prospects.

VANIER: CNN Global Affairs Analyst, Aaron David Miller, thank you very much for your insights.

MILLER: Thank you.

VANIER: Now, we're learning more about the horrors that many Rohingya refugees are facing as they've been violently driven from Myanmar. Their religious minorities have been targeted in what the U.N. calls a textbook example of ethnic cleansing. Survivors have shared stories of mass murder, rapes, and children being burned alive. More than 600,000 Rohingyas have fled to Bangladesh since August 25, and the U.S. World Food Program says these refugees are at risk of malnutrition. Well, on Monday, CNN's Clarissa Ward will get us a rare look into the lives of persecuted Rohingya Muslims.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLARISSA WARD, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Noral Hak says, he fled a brutal massacre in his village of Tula Toli, others who escape Tula Toli tell a similar story. We wanted to find out more, so we traveled to a sprawling refugee camp along the border, and met 30- year-old Mumtez. The burns that cover he body only hint at the horror she's survived. Describe to me what happened to you? What did you see with your own

eyes, exactly?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[01:28:38] VANIER: Their stories in their own words. That's Monday only on CNN. And U.S. President Donald Trump says his trip across Asia has been a success and that there's been progress on trade on North Korea. We'll take a closer look at that -- what the trip has accomplished when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CYRIL VANIER, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hey, everybody, welcome back to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Cyril Vanier. I want to remind you of our top stories here this hour. The death toll rising after a powerful earthquake on the Iraq-Iran border.

Iranian officials say at least 207 people now had been killed there with more than 1,500 injured. At least four people were killed on the Iraqi side of the border. Shocks were also felt in Pakistan, Lebanon, Kuwait, and Turkey. In the new interview, Saad Hariri said he will return to Lebanon soon.

He said he will formally resign as prime minister but also signaled that he might not step down. Hariri announced his resignation more than a week ago while he was in Saudi Arabia. That has fueled speculation that the Saudis are detaining him. And U.S. President Donald Trump met has with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte at the ASEAN Summit in Manila.

Mr. Trump did not respond when journalists asked if he would bring up the subject of human rights. Mr. Duterte told the media that this was not a news conference, it was a bilateral meeting. They weren't answering questions. President Trump did tell reporters that he has a "great relationship" with Mr. Duterte and that the summit has been very successful.

We're joined by CNN Senior Economic Analyst and former Trump Economic Adviser Steven Moore, as well as CNN Political Analyst and "Washington Post" Columnist, Josh Rogin. There are two priorities going into this trip for the U.S. President, it was North Korea and it was trade. Let's start with North Korea, Mr. Trump says there's been progress. Steven, do you -- do you see progress on that front?

STEPHEN MOORE, CNN SENIOR ECONOMIC ANALYST: Well, he was quite correctly tough on North Korea and China as well. I wish he had been tougher with China. Look, I think this is one of the greatest national security threat on the planet right now is what happening in North Korea. And in my opinion, I think most concern is you can't be tough enough when it comes to North Korea.

Whether or not his tough words are going to lead to a change in action, we will see. Because I do think, and I think a lot of conservatives agree with this, that the linchpin here is China, that to dismantle this nuclear arsenal that North Korea has built up is going to really require very, you know, committed actions by China. And so far they haven't -- they haven't shown any inclination other than words to try to work with the United States to dismantle those nuclear weapons.

VANIER: Right. Every -- it seems every few, I guess, months we're told that China is doing a little bit more to put pressure on North Korea. And here's what happening again, we witness Trump tweeting that the China has agreed to increase sanctions on Pyongyang. Josh, I mean, do you feel that this is a turning point or do you feel this is one more increment in the long road that we just don't know where that ends?

JOSH ROGIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: It's not a turning point, it's not a significant development as far as I can see.

[01:35:00] What was significant was that while in South Korea President Trump in prepared remarks said that we have to make a deal with North Korea. He said that the goal is diplomacy and that he supports that goal. That's a change for President Trump.

That gives an opening for the diplomats under his charge at the State Department to pursue a negotiation, to pursue at least a dialogue to see if there's a way to avoid a war and bring North Korea to the table before they achieve the ability to hit the nuclear -- United States with nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic vessels which President Trump has declared as his red line. All right. That represented some progress.

And then he coupled that with tough words against Pyongyang and it's reached forth South Korea National Assembly. But then Trump undid his own progress by tweeting this morning that North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un is short and fat, OK? And that is --

VANIER: Yes, yes. Let's read that one out.

ROGIN: Yes.

VANIER: Let's read this one out.

ROGIN: And, you know, when you think of -- I mean --

(CROSSTALK)

VANIER: Wait, hold on, let's get -- just get the words because they're pretty striking coming from a president. It's this, "Why would Kim Jong-Un insult me by calling me old when I would never call him 'short and fat?' Oh, well, I try so hard to be his friend and maybe someday that will happen." End of tweet.

ROGIN: Right. So he didn't really try hard to be his friend. He -- and, you know, and the point here is that that is not a part of the coordinated pressure campaign against North Korea. It's not part of the engagement strategy.

That's Donald Trump showing a lack of self-discipline and showing up that he's annoyed with Kim Jong-Un. And that can -- that there's no saying argument that says that that's helpful for solving the North Korean crisis.

MOORE: Yes, but that -- yes.

ROGIN: So what we got here is just a president who is speaking out of both sides of his mouth and that creates confusion, uncertainty, which increases the risk.

VANIER: Steven?

MOORE: I was going to say, look, that -- that's Donald Trump being Donald Trump and, you know --

VANIER: That's right.

MOORE: -- that this is what he did throughout the campaign. And it's just, you know, that this is a modus operandi. But I wanted to say one thing, the big -- I think the big picture here above this Asia trip, I think it has been a significant trip. I think it's been -- Trump has acted with -- in most instances, with great diplomacy.

Now suddenly his tweets I wouldn't advise him sending out for sure. But I think what he's accomplished by going to, you know, Korea, by going to China, by going to Japan, he has, I think, convinced the people of these countries that are, you know, some of the most important nations on the planet, that he does not have horns coming out of his head. That he is now the president of the United States.

There's a lot of fascination in these countries with Donald Trump. That he is the, sort of, new sheriff in town. And I think from -- with that -- from that perspective, I think this trip was highly successful.

ROGIN: I don't disagree with that. I think that, you know, showing up in Asia is a big part of it and spending 12 or 13 days on the region is a great thing for President Trump to do. He showed a lot of solidarity with the allies. Hopefully, he listened to them about the threat that China's raised -- presents.

But I think what we're still lacking and what the region is still looking for is a real American strategy for the region. Obama had a pivot to Asia, it didn't really work out that well. What's the Trump vision for Asia? It's not called --

VANIER: Well, it's been called the Indo-pacific vision, right?

ROGIN: Well, that's right, so --

VANIER: But hold on. Gentlemen, I want to ask you one quick last question about the tweet. Is not that I fixate on it, it's because I kind of feel like -- this is a question I ask myself and I assume viewers are asking themselves, do you scribe any policy significance to that when you have the president of the United States calling the leader of North Korea short and fat? Does that have any meaning with respect to strategy --

ROGIN: Let me tell you -- VANIER: -- American policy (INAUDIBLE) North Korea or is it just

colorful language, you can laugh at it and just log off to it?

ROGIN: Well, let me tell you something, I spend all day every day trying to talk to and talking to people who work in the Trump administration, who are involved in these policies and are involved in negotiating all of the speeches, and the languages, and Methodists, and the signals, and none of them have any idea that any of these tweets are coming, OK? So that the only rational conclusion you can draw is that this is not part of the strategy. It's not part of the policy.

VANIER: Yes, but the question is, can you just take it as a joke? Can you just laugh at it or does it end up having media --

ROGIN: Look, I -- well, you could -- you could laugh at it and I can laugh at it, but if the North Koreans aren't laughing at it because they don't understand it and if the Chinese aren't laughing at it, and the Japanese, and South Koreans aren't laughing at it, we, you know, we can say it until we're blown in the face of the tweets. It don't matter. But the fact is, for people around the world, they do.

VANIER: Josh Rogin, Steven Moore. Thank you very much --

MOORE: Thank you.

ROGIN: Thank you.

VANIER: -- both of you for joining us. Thanks, gentlemen. With the feud between President Trump and Kim Jong-un getting personal, there is now another source of frustration for North Korea's leader. Three U.S. aircraft carriers conducting drills right near the Korean peninsula. CNN's Will Ripley has more on the reaction from Pyongyang.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It was a weekend of mixed messages from President Trump, but one very clear message from North Korean officials here in Pyongyang, they will push forward with developing their nuclear program no matter what the U.S. president says.

[01:39:59] In article "KCNA" over the weekend saying "The reckless remarks by a dotard like Trump can never frighten us or put a stop to our advance." That word dotard which roughly translates to senile, old person was first used by North Korea's leader Kim Jong-Un back in September after President Trump's fiery speech at the United Nations General Assembly when he threaten to totally destroy North Korea and also came up with his own nickname for Kim, "Rocket Man." Well, President Trump apparently taking offense to the use of that word, lashing out on Twitter, saying, "Why would Kim Jong-Un insult me by calling me old when I would never call him 'short and fat?' Oh, well, I try so hard to be his friend and maybe someday that will happen." So in the same tweet, you have an insult but also an offer of friendship. And then there was this, when President Trump was speaking in Vietnam.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Strange things happen in life, that might be a strange thing to happen but it's certainly a possibility. If that did happen, it would be a good thing for, I can tell you, for North Korea. But it would also be good for lots of other places, that would be good for the world.

So certainly it is something that could happen. I don't know that it will, but it would be very, very nice if it did.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY: So once again, President Trump there talking about friendship with North Korea's leader, but when we show the verbatim in his remarks to North Korean officials, this was not an official response but basically what they told us is -- their impression, they thought it was a cunning attempt to perhaps try to dissuade North Korea from rounding off its nuclear force. And again, they action speak louder than words. They pointed the fact that just this weekend there were joint naval exercises involving three U.S. aircraft carriers strike groups in the waters off the Korean peninsula.

And therefore they say, no matter what President Trump says, whether he's talking friendship or attacking this country's way of life, they will continue to push forward with their ultimate goal of developing an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the Mainland U.S. They're also watching closely to see if President Trump will announce his decision, this decision he's been hinting up that will happen by the end of this trip. His administration officials have said as to whether or not North Korea will be added back to the list of state sponsors of terrorism unless that they were taken off of nearly a decade ago during negotiations back then about North Korea's nuclear program.

We see where we are on that now, we'll watch and wait what happens here in North Korea. Will Ripley, CNN Pyongyang

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VANIER: The U.S. officials are investigating eyewitness reports that a soldier's body was found with his hands tied after last month's ISIS attack in Niger. Sergeant La David Johnson was one of four Americans killed in the ambush. Officials say his body was found more than a kilometer away from the scene two days after the attack. The new reports are part of an investigation into exactly what happened in the attack and its aftermath.

A small town in Texas is trying to emerge from tragedy stronger than ever. Next, the targeted church reopens a week after the shooting with a striking memorial for the victims.

[01:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I've been sexually assaulted, I've been raped. I've been sexually assaulted multiple times throughout my life. It's affected me and every, like, aspect of my life. It's given me major depression.

I always had tried and speak out about this thing and there's always been kind of this awkwardness around it or hesitation with people to speak about it. This is really cleansing. I think this is -- it's just like very beautiful that all these women are speaking out.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What do we want?

VANIER: She was one of the hundreds of sexually abused survivors and their supporters who marched in Los Angeles on Sunday. High profile allegations of sexual misconduct have captured the country's attention, but the problem goes well beyond just entertainment or politics. Similar stories of sexual abuse are widespread in the private and professional lives of many regardless of gender.

The victims often say that they were targeted by men or women in positions of power. A week after the deadliest mass shooting in Texas' history a grieving community is turning to prayer to heal. The pastor of the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs says the shooter chose darkness but the community will choose light.

Twenty-five people and an unborn child were killed including the pastor's 14-year-old daughter. The church is now reopened as a memorial and hopes that it will help Texas and the country grow stronger together.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK COLLINS, ASSOCIATE PASTOR, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH: The message is that it was us that was attacked and that been capitalized. It was all of us. And so I know a lot of times the situation like this you go under a black tarp and you never see the building again. And we wanted to carefully decide how we could memorialize those that we lost but also honor and respect them, but also make it open.

People have traveled from the east coast just to come and stand on these grounds and we wanted to make it where they could come and mourn in their own way for those that we all have lost.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VANIER: CNN's Kaylee Hartung is in the Sutherland Springs and she describes the memorial.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAYLEE HARTUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Twenty-six chairs now sit inside First Baptist Church. Each chair placed in a location that a victim's body was found. As you walk among the chairs, you see the names handpainted in gold lettering. You see where Joanne Ward threw her body on top of her children in an effort to protect them from gunfire. You see the vantage point that Carla Holcomb had as the horror unfolded before her, her chair the lone chair sitting on the altar. Each chair has a red rose sitting in it.

There's one pink rose in the seat of the unborn baby Holcomb. You hear a recording being played in the sanctuary now. It's the voices of the victims from moments when they were involved in church services past.

This sanctuary reopened to the public from 10:00 am to 10:00 pm Monday through Friday of this week. And the church leaders expressed a sense of urgency they felt to reopen the church's doors so that it could be a part of the healing process for some, to bring a sense of closure to others, particularly the victims' families. And next Sunday the congregation of First Baptist Church will gather on the church's grounds for their worship service.

Kaylee Hartung, CNN, Sutherland Springs, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VANIER: A nine-year-old boy dying of cancer had an early Christmas wish. And now thousands of people across the world are responding. We'll have that story when we come back. Stay with us.

[01:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

IVAN CABRERA, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm CNN meteorologist Ivan Cabrera with your weather watch. And the winter preview has been extended, right. We've been talking about much colder than we should be for this time of the year especially across the northern United States although that cool air has funneled all the way into the southeastern U.S. new system one after the other.

Now we bring in some rains, snow, and just some significant winter swell for portions of the Pacific Northwest. But if you're traveling across the northeastern U.S., we'll have temperatures that will continue rather cool. We're not going to have a big warm up but basically through the middle part of the week, the chunk of this very cold air will begin to lift to the north and what that will do is will allow for temperatures at least for a few days to recover and things to thaw out a little bit after the big chill.

The mild temperatures as you see the trend there continue across further south and the east. And there you see Atlanta getting out of the cool lower teens to mid and upper teens and eventually with 20 degrees by the end of the week. New York City, there is the cool there. That's going to feel nice between eight degrees and jump into 12 by Thursday as a little push of milder air begins to move in.

There's the front clearing things out and really pretty quiet across the mid-section of the U.S. with the exception of this new low, you see that spinning up and continuing to crash into the north and west. And again, that will clip also parts of northern California with some rainfall.

VANIER: A nine-year-old boy dying of cancer in the U.S. is receiving an early Christmas gift. Actually, thousands of them from all around the world. Doctors told Jacob Thompson's family back in October that he probably had just a month left to live. So Jacob made a wish for his final days and people have been delivering.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the same thing.

(CROSSTALK)

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Nine-year-old Jacob Thompson tears open Christmas presents with the excitement of any other kid his age. The holidays have come early for Jacob this year, unwrapping his gifts from a children's hospital there in Portland, Maine. After he was admitted last month, Jacob and his family learned that the two-year-long battle with cancer had taken in turn for the worst.

Doctors told Jacob's family he likely wouldn't live to the end of the year. With Christmas less than two months away, Jacob's parents decided to bring their son his favorite holiday early. And Jacob had one single request, homemade cards from anyone who could spare a bit of holiday cheer.

ROGER GUAY, JACOB'S FATHER: Just that little moment to make him happy and to -- just to make his day.

HOLMES: After his parents spread the word to friends and the media, Jacob's wish was granted and then some. More than 40,000 cards and presents poured in from across the U.S. and beyond.

GUAY: It's neat to hear that cards are coming in from all over the world, Denmark, Sweden, Antarctica, the U.K.

HOLMES: The response was so overwhelming New England law enforcement agencies coordinated to bring Jacob his gifts.

[01:55:08] With a caravan of police cruisers and motorcycles making the special delivery.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When something bigger than us, you know, a mission comes up, something like this little boy and it pulls us together.

HOLMES: Each card, message, and gift are reminder that Jacob is not alone on his Christmas in November.

GUAY: Seeing him smile and be happy, it's just been a blessing that, you know, it fills my heart with such joy to see him happy like this.

HOLMES: Michael Holmes, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE) VANIER: And since we put together that story he -- Jacob has actually received more gifts and cards. He indicated on Facebook it's now up to 66,000 gifts and cards that he's received. All right. Thank you very much for watching CNN NEWSROOM. We'll be back after this break.